Read the general investor planning overview
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand owner may use an established business’s results to plan a U.S. investment. Explain the assumptions behind the new enterprise rather than presenting the other operation’s revenue as the U.S. company’s own record. A first review should turn the proposal into a transaction map: who owns the U.S. entity, what is being bought or built, which funds have moved, and what makes them unavailable for personal use. It should also identify the record behind each forecast input. Hypothetical example: an industrial felt-recycling workshop has letters of interest from retailers but no signed supply agreements. The decision is whether the projected demand is sufficiently qualified in the plan or whether the purchase should wait for stronger operating evidence.
Separate historical evidence from the proposed forecast
Identify which operation earned the historical revenue and which costs, customers and resources are assumed for the U.S. business. Hypothetical example: a Canadian operation’s results inform planning, but the U.S. customer relationships remain unconfirmed. Label those differences accurately instead of copying the history under a new company name. Create separate evidence folders for the existing operation and the proposed U.S. enterprise. For every projected customer or expense, label whether it is contracted, historical for another entity, or an assumption. The decision is whether the forecast can be defended as a forecast without borrowing results the U.S. business has not earned.
Assess the enterprise and the actual investment
E-2 requires substantial lawful funds committed at risk in a real operating nonmarginal enterprise with capacity beyond minimal family living or for significant economic contribution. No universal investment minimum or staff quota replaces the assessment. A profitable related business does not alone establish the proposed U.S. enterprise’s conditions. Match the purchase, lease, equipment, launch and working-capital documents to the funds actually committed. The amount must be substantial in relation to this enterprise, and the funds must be committed and at risk; money reserved for a future decision is not the same thing. Decide whether the transaction record shows a real operating enterprise rather than a plan waiting for an investor’s next choice.
Retain ownership, authority and funding evidence
Verify treaty nationality, generally at least 50% relevant treaty-national enterprise ownership and development and direction through qualifying control. Establish lawful source and path. Enterprise-secured debt is not qualifying capital; other financing and properly structured visa-contingent escrow need review on their actual terms. The forecast should connect to the transaction actually proposed. Read the signed ownership and control documents, not just the intended capitalization table. Then trace each dollar from lawful source to the enterprise and identify any security interest that changes the investor’s risk. The reader must decide whether the applicant can genuinely develop and direct the enterprise under the transaction that will actually close.
What else is on your mind?
Is there one minimum investment that guarantees E-2 eligibility?Is holding money or owning an asset enough for E-2?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.